The news certainly was a hot topic on the blue carpet of the
Critics’ Choice Awards on Sunday. When asked about whether or not people should
skip the 88th Academy Awards, Niecy Nash suggested that a boycott was not
necessarily the solution.

“I don't know if avoiding it altogether is going to help,
but I just think we have to continue to move forward,” the Getting On actress told ET. “We have this awareness and this
spotlight -- we've got to look at other work. There’s other work out there that
I think was missed. We’ve just got to do better.”

“You also have to look at the diversity on the Academy’s
board,” Gina Rodriguez said of the Oscars’ eligible voting membership, which are
mostly white men with an average age of 62. “It’s not as diverse as reflected
in today's society. [We’ve] got to fix that.”

Meanwhile, Tracee Ellis Ross told ET she “wasn’t planning on
going anyway.” But the Black-ish star
quickly clarified that she probably wasn’t going to be invited because, as a TV
actress, the ceremony “does not necessarily apply” to her.

However, the Best Acting in a Comedy Series nominee did
bring the focus back to Sunday’s awards. “The Critics’ Choice Awards reflect
the world we live in and that is an example I think we should all look at,” she
said.

While all of the Oscars’ 20 acting nominees went to white,
cisgender and straight-identifying actors, the Critics’ Choice Awards’ pool of
nominees are far more diverse. On the TV side, Black-Ish, Empire, Fresh Off the Boat, Jane the Virgin, Mr. Robot,and
Transparent are all up for multiple awards.

On the film side, the Critics’ Choice Awards does face a similar
issue over diversity. Abraham Attah (Beasts
of No Nation), RJ Cyler (Me and Earl
and the Dying Girl), and Shameik Moore (Dope)
are the only people of color nominated for an acting award, all up for Best
Young Actor/Actress.